MAAP #115: Illegal Gold Mining Frontiers, part 1: Peruvian Amazon
In a new series, we highlight the main illegal gold mining frontiers in the Amazon. Here, in part 1, we focus on Peru. In the upcoming part 2, we will look at Brazil. The Base Map indicates our focus areas…
MAAP #104: Major Reduction in Illegal Gold Mining from Peru’s Operation Mercury
In February 2019, the Peruvian government launched Operation Mercury (OperaciĂłn Mercurio), a major multi-sectoral crackdown on the illegal gold mining crisis in the area known as La Pampa,* located in the southern Peruvian Amazon (Madre de Dios region). Note that…
MAAP #96: Gold Mining Deforestation at Record High Levels in Southern Peruvian Amazon
Gold mining deforestation has been at record high levels in both 2017 and 2018 in the southern Peruvian Amazon. Based on an analysis of nearly 500 high-resolution satellite images (from Planet and DigitalGlobe), we estimate the deforestation of 18,440 hectares …
MAAP Synthesis #3: Deforestation in the Andean Amazon (Trends, Hotspots, Drivers)
MAAP, an initiative of the organization Amazon Conservation, uses cutting-edge satellite technology to monitor deforestation in near real-time in the megadiverse Andean Amazon (Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, and Bolivia). The monitoring is based on 5 satellite systems: Landsat (NASA/USGS), Sentinel (European…
MAAP #91: Introducing PeruSAT-1, Peru’s new High-resolution Satellite
In September 2016, Peru’s first satellite, PeruSAT-1, launched. It is Latin America’s most powerful Earth observation satellite, capturing images at a resolution of 0.70 meters. The cutting-edge satellite was constructed by Airbus (France) and is now operated by the Peruvian…
MAAP #90: Using Drones to monitor Deforestation and Illegal Logging
For the past three years, the organization Amazon Conservation has been working to establish a sustainable, local-based drones program for environmental monitoring in the southern Peruvian Amazon (Madre de Dios region). This program is based on two types of drones,…
MAAP #87: Gold Mining deforestation continues in the Peruvian Amazon
We have reported extensively on the ongoing gold mining deforestation crisis in the southern Peruvian Amazon (see Archive), estimating the loss of over 17,500 acres in the five years between 2013 and 2017. Here, we present new analysis showing that…
MAAP #81: Carbon loss from deforestation in the Peruvian Amazon
When tropical forests are cleared, the enormous amount of carbon stored in the trees is released to the atmosphere, making it a major source of global greenhouse gas emissions (CO2) that drive climate change. In fact, a recent study revealed…
MAAP #79 – Seeing through the Clouds: Monitoring Deforestation with Radar
MAAP has repeatedly emphasized the power and importance of Earth observation satellites with optical sensors (such as Landsat, Planet, DigitalGlobe). However, they also have a key limitation: clouds block the data about Earth from reaching the sensor, a common problem…
MAAP #78: Deforestation Hotspots in the Peruvian Amazon, 2017
As we begin a new year, we make an initial assessment of 2017, estimating deforestation hotspots in the Peruvian Amazon based on early warning alert data.* We estimate the annual forest loss of 354,410 acres (143,425 hectares) across Peru in…